Flowers on the Avenue starts web site

By Jenny Dwoskin

As Internet-surfing, eBay-obsessed young adults, college students can appreciate the hassle-free convenience of online shopping. Flowers on the Avenue – the Villanova community’s florist for over 16 years – has recently hooked up with Teleflora, opening up shop on the World Wide Web as the virtual Wawa of the flower industry (open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year).

Flowers on the Avenue, located on Lancaster Avenue at the edge of campus near Campus Corner, provides convenient service to Villanova students who often have no access to transportation. But the new web site will make sending flowers even easier, whether it’s for a forgotten-anniversary apology or a last-minute birthday present for a roommate.

The search engine provided on www.villanovaflowers.com allows customers to search for appropriate bouquets by price and occasion. In addition, the web site recommends suitable flower bunches, plants and baskets for anything ranging from corporate gifts to sympathy offerings. Flower arrangements can also be matched to seasons or color schemes. Optional detailing for the bouquets includes Mylar balloons, decorative candles, teddy bears and gourmet chocolates.

The Web site also allows customers to set up an account which “remembers” a client’s address and billing information and posts tips on how to arrange flowers, take care of them and help them to last as long as possible.

What’s more, the idiot-proof design of the web site makes it a cinch for Mom, Dad, and the rest of the gang back home to send you something -after all, those Quad rooms could use some sprucing up. Having trouble picking out just the right thing? Flower arrangement can be a tricky business, so keep these tips in mind:

Many flowers have specific meanings. The violet-hued lisianthus symbolizes appreciation, while the calla lily denotes acknowledgment of great beauty. Gerbera daisies are signs of happiness, and pink lillies are the official flower of mothers. Sunflowers communicate feelings of respect. The various significances of roses depend on their color. Yellow ones mean friendship, pink ones say “thank you,” orange ones stand for desire and red ones are the universal symbol of love.

When sending flowers as a business gesture, keep it simple. Because frills are out of place in this situation, flowers are often inappropriate. Good choices for the big boss, the prospective client or the new coworker include fruit or gourmet baskets and non-flowering plants.

Coordinate with the foliage.

Flowers are supposed to look natural, so try colors that match the current season. For autumn, concentrate on orange, golden and red tones.

Campusfood.com comes to Villanova

By Megan Angelo

The freshman 15 has a new technological enabler.

Campusfood.com, a website that allows college students across the country to order takeout and delivery food from their own computers, recently added several of Villanova’s local restaurants to its ranks. The website allows students to choose from the full menus of each of the participating businesses, totals the price of orders and stores the delivery addresses of customers for easy repeat ordering.

According to the history posted on its web site, Campusfood.com supports over 1,000 restaurants around 200 colleges. Founded in 1997, its headquarters are in New York. Several of the restaurants working with campusfood.com this year, including Garrett Hill, promoted their involvement by offering free food to students last week. In addition to taking phone orders, the advantages of using Campusfood.com are obvious to the owners of Villanova’s delivery restaurants. “The kids are using the computers more and more every day,” John Iezzi, owner of Villanova staple Campus Corner, said. “Every time I take an order on the phone, I hear their computers going in the background, so I thought, ‘Why not give it a shot?'”

Iezzi admitted that the system, which he signed on with at the beginning of this semester, still has some kinks in it. Losing the person-to-person contact of a phone order sometimes causes confusion on the specifics of an order. The problems have only been minor, however, and Iezzi said that the computerized orders, which are delivered to Campus Corner via fax, free up cashiers who would have normally been on the phone. Skeptical of the free-food promise and the efficiency of sending an online request to a hectic restaurant, many Villanovans, like sophomore Rob Simione, tested out campusfood.com last week. “The morning after we ordered, I woke up and saw a pizza box under all the scattered beer cans in my room,” Simione remembered. “I reached in my pocket, and all my money was still there. It was a good feeling. I was mystified.”

When the food actually arrived quickly and for only a dollar (to tip the driver), Rob was impressed. He says he’ll use the web site instead of the phone now, and his friends will, too. Ordering from restaurants like Domino’s, which delivers until 3 a.m. on the weekends, is an undeniable hazard for students trying to avoid the near inevitable weight gain associated with college life. However, studies show that the freshman 15 is largely mythical these days, as the actual flab today’s student packs on averages at only three to five pounds. In fact, a third of college freshmen lose weight during their first year. Still, being able to get a cheesesteak by pointing and clicking surely will do nothing to keep those statistics low. “I hope the girls don’t find out about all this free food,” Simione said. “I don’t want to see them gain the sophomore 60.”